Tighten It Up

President Craig calls them 3 Minute Lessons. Elder Zwick calls it, "Simplify and Intensify." President Barry called them, "Short, Powerful Lessons." I prefer KISS, or, "Keep It Simple, Silly." Our leaders keep reiterating it, each with a new name and the same concept. Short and simple lessons are the most effective.

President John Taylor said, "It is true intelligence for a man to take a subject that is mysterious and great in itself, and to unfold and simplify it so that a child can understand it." Preach My Gospel, pg. 182 B.H. Roberts wrote, "To be known, the truth must be stated and the clearer and more complete the statement is, the better the opportunity will the Holy Spirit have for testifying to the souls of men that the work is true." New Witnesses for God, 3 vols. (1909), 2:vii

I use a few tricks to cut down on the length of my posts.

1. Leave out unimportant details from personal stories. This includes tangents. Often times, it sounds better if we don't add a lot of fluff.
2. Rearrange words in a long sentence. Sometimes that can cut out the clutter.
3. Try not using to be verbs. Such as: am, are, is, be, been, were. We depend a lot on these words, but we can do without them.
4. Sometimes we explain something one time, and then to emphasize the point, we say it again, but in a different way. Take those sentences out and just say it right the first time.
5. Let scriptures and quotes do their own talking.

What tips do you have?

Sharing Via Blogs (LDS.org's Tips on Blogging)

(I stole borrowed it...)

Publishing your life through a blog can be an excellent way to share with the world what being a member of the Church means to you.

Share with the world what being a member of the church means to you.

What to Share?

You can be a missionary just by being a good example of a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. For example, telling your friends you went to church on Sunday lets them know you participate actively in the gospel. By your everyday actions, others can also know that Mormons strive to follow Christ.

Now imagine your influence expanding even greater on a blog.

Blogging Basics

Not sure where to blog? You can use websites that are easy to use and publish with, like Blogger or Wordpress.

Don't forget to promote your blog. Ask your family, friends, and fellow members in the Church to subscribe to your blog. Share the link to blog posts on your social media channels.

Interact with your readers by replying to comments. You can also link to other blogs in your posts.

Most important, follow the Holy Ghost's guidance as you contemplate ways you can use your blog to share the gospel.

3 Tips That Will Make a Big Difference

1. Write about your day-to-day life
2. Update your blog often
3. Share experiences or what you learn at Church or in your family home evening

Keep Moving Forward

Alma 30:44

By Elder Richmond

In the midst of thinking about my ideas for "Why Atheists are Sometimes Right," I was pondering Alma 30:44 (which I mentioned in the last post), and figured I'd try to do some stickies of it. I'm pretty satisfied with the end result.

--- --- ---

I know that God, our Heavenly Father, created this and all the other worlds, and I know that all of His creations indeed witness that He created them. I'm thankful for the opportunity I have to be here and to enjoy everything He has made. I so say in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

-Elder Richmond

This Miracle Mile

Sacrifice...

By Sister Yates

When I was in the MTC (Missionary Training Center) Elder Neil L. Andersen of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles came and addressed us in a worldwide broadcast to each MTC in the world (there are 17 of them).  I will never forget that night, as I had the opportunity to perform in the Missionary Choir (which is one of the most powerful and spiritual experiences I’ve ever had with music), and the words that were spoken have changed my life, and will continue to help me on my “mile”…

Elder Andersen talked about selflessness, service, and sacrifice.  As a missionary, those are pretty much the 3 words you would hope people would use to describe what you do, and how you behave.  But what people forget is that we’re still human.  However, Heavenly Father doesn’t forget that, so He gives us our amazing mission presidents, the White Handbook (the missionaries guide to success), Preach My Gospel (the text book of missionary work), and the Scriptures (the Word of God) to help us as we serve for these 18 months or 2 years. 

What I’m getting at is:

I totally fooled myself in thinking that I was 100% prepared to serve.  I’m not talking about a repentance issue, or anything super serious like that would cause me to be unworthy to serve.  That’s not the problem.  The problem was that I had overlooked the necessity of living the Law of Sacrifice.

Elder Andersen asked one of his missionaries who served while he was a mission president in France, many years ago.  The Brother he had participate and share stories with us was so humble, and so sweet.  What I loved most was a quote by Elder Andersen, as he was questioning this Brother about the sacrifice of missionary work.  He said:

“We sacrifice what we love, and we love what we sacrifice for.”

What an amazing principle.  I testify that sacrifices are hard to make… I never, ever would have expected what my sacrifice would be, but what I do know is that obeying this Law (and for those who have been to the temple, have covenanted to obey) brings blessings we may not see until the life to come.   But I know that because I took an incredibly hard step in showing my faith to God, that He will bless me.  He’ll take care of my sacrifice, and whatever is meant to be will be.  I know that when we sacrifice what we love (whether it be a person, a thing, a hobby, an organ… whatever!) that God will accept it and bless us when it is truly a sacrifice for us to give it to Him.  The Bible Dictionary says:

“Sacrifices were thus instructive as well as worshipful. They were accompanied by prayer, devotion, and dedication, and represented an acknowledgment on the part of the individual of his duty toward God, and also a thankfulness to the Lord for his life and blessings upon the earth (see Gen. 4:3–7; 8:20; 22:1–17; Ex. 5:3; 20:24).”

If we want to run the best “mile” we can, we have to sacrifice.  Do we have to know how everything will turn out? No, because then it’s not a true sacrifice.  Sacrifice is an act of devotion.  It’s putting the things that matter most to you in God’s hands, and doing your part to be worthy of the blessings that come from that action.  I know it’s hard, and it is really painful at first to A- Realize what needs to be sacrificed, and B- Give it up.  But I do know without a doubt, that this is something everyone can benefit from.

So, my question to you: What can you sacrifice?  What is that one thing that would truly show God how much you love Him and desire to serve Him first in all things?

I promise as you fast, and ponder, and pray, and then act upon the answer you receive, that you will see miracles.  You will be blessed,  and your relationship with God and the Savior will grow more than you can ever imagine.

I leave that in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

The Quest for Love

Lonely Love

By Elder Frazier

There are times in our life that we feel that we are the only ones out there. We feel that we are the only ones next to us on our path. However, we never are. In my life, I have found it difficult at times to realize this factor.  When we turn to the Lord, we can find strength that there is someone out there for us. There is someone walking the path with us. As a junior in college, I found my self depressed. I had hit a bottom low for my self esteem and I struggled to see how I could deal with everything. I went to my doctor and she put me on an anti-depressant, which soon became known as my happy pills. At this time in my life, I was a full time athlete, I was working 30 hours a week, and I was a full time biology student. My plate was a little too full. I had put my self in a depression from too much stress. I struggled to feel accepted and just was angry for many reasons. However, I was never alone. My savior, Jesus Christ, was always there for me. He was there to help me and I as turned to him, I was able to find strength. I was able to see the benefits and blessing that come from my Savior. I love how the Bible tells us that all we need to do is Knock! He will open the door to us every time. The Lord will never reject who we are. The thing that got me out my depression was prayer. I prayed to him and asked for his help. I wanted to feel happy again and I wanted to know that I didn’t need to depend on a pill to do that for me. Truth be told, while I was on my pills, I never fully felt happy. My emotions were different than my thoughts. I needed help from Savior to feel happy. It was a work in progress but I had to learn how to relay on Jesus to find that happiness again in my life.In the Book Of Mormon, the end of 2 Nephi, there many references to how the Savior has his arms open to us at all times, no matter what we do. Our Savior loves us and all we need to do is turn to him. 

by Grace

What if?

by Sister Eddington

I had an opportunity to attend a baptism this evening that changed my life forever!
The bishop of the ward got up and told a little bit of a story that really rang true to me.

Each one of us, in our search for truth/knowledge have had to ask at one point in our lives: "what if?"

Often, these questions lead to great knowledge:

What if the sun doesn't actually go around the earth? 
What if the earth was round and not flat?  
What if we ate this weird mold to cure infection?  
What if we tried chocolate and peanut butter together?

Now, if these questions had not been asked, we would not have gotten very far in science. What about religion?

What if God exists?  
What if He really did love me enough to send His Son to die for my sins? 
What if Joseph Smith really did see Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ?  
What if He really does love me enough to give me direction today through a living prophet?

His story took me to a time when I had begun to ask different questions:

What if I have been lied to all of my life?  
What if this whole Joseph Smith thing is just a hoax?  
What if the church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is not really His church? 
What if the Book of Mormon was just made up by Joseph Smith?

These are the hard questions.

However, they are questions that each of us needs to address at one point or another in our lives. 

Having taken the rough road--the one where you ask both kinds--I testify that we can receive answers to those, because I did!  I know that Joseph Smith is a prophet, but I don't want you to take my word for it. Do what I did! Ask the questions, do the homework, and "receive" the answers :)

It all comes from faith. We must "experiment" upon the word (Alma 32:26-27).

We must ask God. 

Liahona Lane

What about the man in China? Temples and Family History

By Sister V. Johnson

Pictured: A man in China

In order to enter the Kingdom of God, you have to have faith in Jesus Christ and His Atonement, repent, be baptized by someone holding Priesthood Authority, receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, and endure to the end. That's all fine and dandy if you live in a nation with religious freedom and missionaries that are allowed to knock on your door. But what if you're a poor man in rural China who lived a good life, but died without ever finding out that Jesus Christ exists? Is he damned for eternity? Nope!
In the afterlife, we'll either go to a spirit paradise or spirit prison, which is a lot like a spirit school. Jesus Christ opened the way for missionary work to go on in the spirit world so we can learn about Him even after we've died. So if this man in China would have accepted Christ while he was alive, he can accept Christ after he has died. God is just and fair and gives this opportunity to all His children, no matter where they live.

Hamilton New Zealand Temple

However, accepting Christ isn't enough. We have to be baptized and make other covenants in the temple, and these can only be done while we're alive and have a body. That's where we come in. At the temple, we perform saving ordinances for and in behalf of our deceased ancestors. They still have the same personality and their agency to accept or reject the work we've done for them. We can't force anyone, alive or dead, to be a Mormon or a member of Jesus Christ's church. But it's important that they at least have that option.

This is why it's so important to do our Family History. You have ancestors waiting to get their temple work done, and they're eager for it to be done before the Millennium -- tomorrow if possible.Get started finding your ancestors so their temple work can be done. So visit your local Family History Center today! Even if you can't get started on your own family history just yet, you can help others do theirs by volunteering to do indexing. Soon, you will feel the Spirit of Elijah working in you!

Family History is Fun!

Reach a Wider Audience

We're not in this for the popularity.

But some good numbers would be nice. Just like we don't use the key indicators for recognition and advancement, hits and comments will mean nothing if we're just trying to be popular online. However, higher numbers reflect the work we're putting into our blog and the people who can be touched by the message of the Gospel.

Networking

You have friends. Use them: A blog's popularity is based on the number of people that look at your blog, stay there, and leave comments. Start out by sharing your blog on your Facebook page, and even sharing posts with specific friends. Then ask your friends to share your blog with their friends. Get your ward involved too. In Clayton M. Christensen's The Power of Everyday Missionaries, he describes the roles of different online missionaries. Some wrote the blogs, some commented on them to create discussion, and some shared the blogs with other people. We need all three of these roles to make blogs successful.

Participate on Other Blogs: Help out your fellow missionaries by sharing their blogs on your Facebook page as well. You can even help the discussions along by leaving comments. As you help others, others will be willing to help you.

Gadgets and Widgets

These are the little applications to the side of the posts that are kind of fun to use. I'm trying to find and use as many gadgets and widgets as I can find on this blog. Don't use that many. You don't need to overwhelm your page. A few will help your readers interact a bit more with your blog. I've put as many as I can up so you can get some ideas or just take the ones you want. If you have a widget that I haven't used, please let me know in the comments.

Write With the Spirit

The Spirit is in Charge

Of the Plates of Nephi, Mormon said, "But behold, I shall take these plates, which contain these prophesyings and revelations, and put them with the remainder of my record, for they are choice unto me; and I know they will be choice unto my brethren. And I do this for a wise purpose; for thus it whispereth me, according to the workings of the Spirit of the Lord which is in me. And now, I do not know all things; but the Lord knoweth all things which are to come; wherefore, he worketh in me to do according to his will. And my prayer to God is concerning my brethren, that they may once again come to the knowledge of God, yea, the redemption of Christ; that they may once again be a delightsome people." Words of Mormon 1:6-8 See also vs. 3-5 Emphasis added.

A blog is kind of like writing a mini Book of Mormon. These are our testimonies, experiences, and revelations. Since we are writing about spiritual things, we have to let the Spirit do part of the work.  In the scriptures, we're promised that the Spirit shall give us what we shall write, or dictate to us, if we write with meekness.

I've found that the difference between me writing a blog post and the Spirit writing it through me is astounding. When I've prayed about a subject, studied it in the scriptures, and given it the time it needs, I find my writing flows much better. It just pours out of my pen instead of being forced out. I am so much happier with the post I've written. That's not to say when the Spirit is helping you, writing the post is easy; it still takes work. The results, however, are far better.

The Power of the Spirit

Our readers must feel the Spirit when they read our blogs, just the same as when we teach. It doesn't matter how good of a writer you think you are; the Spirit will still carry the truth to your readers' hearts. Even Nephi didn't think he was that great of a writer.

One of the best ways for investigators to feel the Spirit is for you to bear powerful testimony, which they can read on your blog. Don't hesitate to share it. "Powerful testimony is not dependent on eloquence or the [size of your readership] but on the conviction of your heart.... Bear testimony often to seal the truth of the principles or doctrine you are teaching." Preach My Gospel, Ch. 11 pp. 198-199.  

To write with the converting power of the Spirit, follow these guidelines given in Preach My Gospel ("Write" substituted for "Teach"):

• "Be edified and have your mind enlightened as you search the scriptures and [write about] the doctrine.
• "Create a climate when you [write] in which the Holy Ghost can bear witness. You do this by [writing] and testifying of the message of the Restoration. [Write] as directed by the Spirit, and testify that you know by the power of the Holy Ghost that what you [write] is true.
• "Follow the guidance of the Spirit in adapting the message to [your audience's] needs.
• "Invite people to act. Their faith will grow as they repent, obey the commandments, and make and keep covenants." Preach My Gospel, Ch. 4, pg. 92.

Writer's Block

Do you suffer from Writer's Block? Do not fear, for we have the greatest secret weapon to combat this foe of writers everywhere. It's called the Holy Ghost.

If you don't feel good about the post you've written, don't post it. Jesus Christ told Oliver Cowdery, "But if it be not right you shall have no such feelings, but you shall have a stupor of thought that shall cause you to forget the thing which is wrong; therefore, you cannot write that which is sacred save it be given you from me." Doctrine and Covenants 9:9 

Your next post will come. Just drop what you've been working on for way too long, pray about a new topic, and let the Spirit testify to you what Heavenly Father wants you to write.

Next: Reach a Wider Audience

Teaching Skills

The Work Your Audience Won't See

Before a missionary hits the streets, they spend two weeks in the Missionary Training Center. On their mission, every day before a missionary goes out to work, he or she studies for two hours, practices how they will teach, prepares for lessons, and role-plays. In between lessons, missionaries evaluate what went well and what they can improve.  There is a lot of work that goes on before a missionary actually knocks on a door.

My Purpose as a Blogger is...

Nephi told us at the start of the Book of Mormon, "For the fulness of mine intent is that I may persuade men to come unto the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, and be saved. Wherefore, the things which are pleasing unto the world I do not write, but the things which are pleasing unto God and unto those who are not of the world. Wherefore, I shall give commandment unto my seed, that they shall not occupy these plates with things which are not of worth unto the children of men." 1 Nephi 6:4-6 Nephi began by giving us his purpose in writing the Book of Mormon.

Of course we have the same purpose as every other missionary. But as bloggers, we must present doctrine and our personal experiences in well written, easily accessible, and personable form. We want to reach as many people as possible so the right people who need our words can read them and feel the Spirit.

Teaching Skills

How to Begin Teaching: Explain to your audience what your blog is all about. Create an "About" Page, write a blog description, give your posts labels or tags. This is essential for you and for your readers because if you can't explain your blog's niche simply, they won't understand it either. The best blogs are ones with a more narrow purpose. Ironically, it is a lot easier to write when you have given yourself restrictions. Ask yourself some questions: What is your blog about? Is it about you and "whatever?" Is it on a particular, specific topic? With your blog's current description in mind, can you come up with ten post ideas in the next minute?

Adjust your Teaching to Meet Needs: Be different. Be concise. Be relate-able. Be yourself. You can't write to please every single person on the face of the earth. Just do your best because if your write it, someone will like it. 

Teach With Your Companion in Unity: Look to your right. Or left. If your companion is not there, bring them over. This is your editor, sounding board, and possible guest-blogger. Congratulate them for accepting this new calling that you just volun-told them for.

Invite Members to Help you Teach: Get your ward to comment on your blog. On the actual blog. Comments on Facebook don't do you any good. Members are also good for guest posts.

Use the Scriptures: If you need inspiration, the Book of Mormon is the best blog ever. Really. Link to the scriptures in your posts. It will give power and authority to what you say. Preach My Gospel says to Introduce passages of scripture, read them, and then apply them to the investigator. This would make for a great blog post.

Teach for Understanding: Most newspapers are written at a 6th grade reading level, not because they're written by sixth graders, but so that the general population can understand it. You don't have to write to a super simple level, but make sure that most people can understand it. Also, shorter posts are better. Online, attention spans aren't very long.

Ask Questions: Create some discussion with questions. Make it as easy as possible for people to leave comments. Questions also invite people to act. Also, asking questions is a great way to come up with post ideas.

Listen: It's kind of hard to listen to people online unless they comment. But you can also watch your traffic stats to see what's more popular with your readers and the rest of the world.

Leave Something Behind: Let people know what to expect, such as when you'll post next, what you'll write about next time, or even just what you tend to write about. It's a good idea to have a list of ideas for posts, or even a few posts saved as drafts in case you fall behind. 

Next: Write With the Spirit

Dress Code Applied

The First Impression

Missionaries have a strict dress code that allows some room for creativity. No missionary will look exactly the same as another, but they all look neat and polished. In the same sense, all our blogs are going to be different, but they must be put together and professional. These are some guidelines to work within so that you can do so.

Kickouts

Online, people are picky, judgmental, and have no attention span. If they don't like the look of your webpage or have to put too much effort into understanding the content, they are out of there. Usually, this verdict takes 5-10 seconds. An element or cause that regularly annoys web viewers and makes them automatically leave a page is called a Kickout. There are a few we can avoid.

Wall of Text
Interfering Background
Fancy Fonts
     Comic Sans (Personal opinion, but if I see it, I'll punch your blog in the face)
Web 1.0 Look
     Text changes fonts or colors
Media That Doesn't Load
Bad Spelling or Formatting
Automatically Playing Sounds or Music

Style Guide

Newspaper writers have a book called the AP Style Guide that tells them what to capitalize, what punctuation to us, how to list a birthday or address, how to refer to organizations ... It is often referred to as The Bible. By following the AP Style, news articles are clear, informative, uniform, and politically correct.

These are some guidelines to follow so your blog looks better. This short list is by no means comprehensive, and may change from time to time as I think of stuff. Once you have figured out your blog's style (fonts, colors, formatting...) stick with it. You can certainly break these rules, so long as you understand the principle behind it and have a purpose for doing so. 1 Nephi 4

Headlines, or Post Titles: Short, but descriptive. Eye catching. Try out a few different versions before you pick one.

Body/Post: 3-5 paragraphs long. It should be long enough to cover the essentials, but short enough to keep it interesting. Longer posts are fine, but make use of the page break feature. 1 Nephi 9:3-5

Font: Easy on the eyes. Online, Sans-Serif fonts are easier to read. Text should be formal in the body of post, but can be fancier for titles.

Pictures and Media: Change up your posts! They are good to have above the 'fold' of the page, or the first part of the page people see before they scroll. Media needs to load easily.

Links: Noticeable, but not detracting. Use them to cite your statements of doctrine. Have them open to a new page. PMG p. 106

Dignified Language: No typos, no grammar goofs, don't be too casual.

Preview: Useful for catching mistakes. Always always always preview before you post.

URL: Make it easy to remember.

About Me: Fill it out, make it look good.

Next: Teaching Skills